CASH-FLOW PLANNING
The amount matters. The date matters too.
Cash-flow planning asks whether money will be available when each obligation arrives—not merely whether total monthly income exceeds total monthly spending.
Build the timeline
Place expected income, recurring bills, planned purchases, transfers, savings contributions, and debt payments on their expected dates. Apply them in order to the account that actually funds each item.
Watch the minimum balance
A plan can end the period positive while dropping below zero earlier. The lowest projected point exposes timing problems that a simple income-minus-expenses total cannot show.
Plans change
As transactions clear and balances update, the forecast should stop treating those events as hypothetical and recalculate from the newest trustworthy balance. Good cash-flow planning is a rolling model, not a static monthly worksheet.